


The Progressions of a Life

by Opy3332



Category: The Big Bang Theory (TV)
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Post-Season/Series 02, Slow Build, Theatre, slight AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-01
Updated: 2014-11-13
Packaged: 2018-02-23 11:15:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 19,812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2545541
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Opy3332/pseuds/Opy3332
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Progressions of a Life<br/>Or, Finding Yourself in 3 Parts: A Sheldon/Penny fanfic</p><p>Sheldon makes a new friend, and in turn, Penny does as well. She slowly puts her life together and fills in the holes--work, friends, finances, and love. She's surprised by who and what can turn just living into a life.</p><p>Slight AU set sometime after season 2. Explores Sheldon and Penny and their slow ascent through friendship and into romance.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part 1

Part 1

 

Penny hears about it first from Leonard and Howard, interspersed with little head nods and gestures from Raj. Sheldon has already disappeared into his bedroom, presumably to put away his newest comic books. Or quite possibly to avoid this conversation. One could never tell with Sheldon if he was aware of the social situations brewing or not. But with his avoidance history, he was either much more aware than anyone gave him credit for, or just damn lucky. The boys have been talking back and forth as they climbed the stairs but Penny has been having a hard time following, or buying, the story.

“I’m sorry. You’re saying that Sheldon, our Sheldon Cooper, PhD, made a new friend today?” Penny asks in clarification.

“Possibly two,” Howard replies oddly.

“Okay, start again from the top,” Penny says, swearing she is going to pay attention this time.

“Well we were in the comic book store, obviously, since its Wednesday. I was looking at the newest vintage copies of The Flash while Howard and Raj were fighting over which actress was the hottest in the Sarah Connor Chronicles. Usually one of us tries to stay with Sheldon, you know. Keep an eye on him,” Leonard says, as if it makes him the best friend ever. Penny tries to hide her eye roll, she isn’t sure she’s successful. She’d been excited about the possibilities Leonard held, but after a summer apart and the way he’d treated Sheldon, those thoughts had been diminishing daily.

“When suddenly we all hear it. Sheldon is practically yelling, in an odd mixture of Klingon and Mandarin. To a woman.”

“Wait, was she pretty?” Penny interrupts, surprised by her own question.

“Well...not as pretty as you, obviously.” Leonard says quickly. Raj is nodding enthusiastically next to him though so it mostly negates Leonard’s attempts.

Howard jumps in as well, all pseudo smooth voice, “She was certainly no Angelina Jolie, but…,” and he trails off, wagging his eyebrows in blatant innuendo.

“Anyway,” Leonard continues, “we all looked at each other in panic. Sheldon yelling is never good, trust us, and we knew we had to rescue the poor woman. Except, once we all rush over there, the woman is laughing. Laughing. And then answers back in Klingon.”

“Oh my God! Sheldon _met_ a girl!?” Penny exclaims. She didn’t think that parallel universe actually existed. And she wonders what that odd feeling is in her stomach, ignores it as either hunger or amazement.

“Well, technically, yes, but not in the way you’re thinking,” Leonard says. “We’re all staring at the two of them in shock when a man walks up. The woman turns to him and smiles and says ‘Jeremy, this guy’s Klingon is so much better than yours.’”

Howard suddenly takes up telling the story, “Sheldon of course just smirks for a moment, all ego, while we still just stand there in shock. Then, Sheldon actually looks up. Now, I’ve seen Sheldon go crazy, both the good kind and the bad kind, but this was picture perfect.”

Penny’s confusion must show on her face because Leonard jumps in to explain. “It was _the_ Jeremy Snow—another world-renowned physicist.  Probably one of the few other people in the world who can understand all of Sheldon’s work—and possibly surpass it.”

“Oh my God; there are two of them?” Penny asks, trying to keep the skepticism and slight horror out of her voice.

Leonard nods. “It was a real honor. Turns out he is in town working for a few months. He’s like Sheldon, but normal.” He tacks on, and Howard and Raj laugh along with him as Penny grimaces and sides steps the boys into the apartment. She may not want two of him, but there certainly isn’t anything wrong with Sheldon, at least no reason for his so called friends to brand him.

 

She tries to garner some of the story out of Sheldon after they sit down to eat, but doesn't get very far. There's a short, quick flurry of words about physics, intellectual equals, and Star Trek that has Penny lost only a few words in. But what she can't miss is how relaxed he is, almost happy. And it makes her realize even stronger just how unhappy he's been since returning from the Arctic and Texas. It is in all the little things, the small things that make his jaw clench or when he would swallow whatever biting remark is dancing on the edge of his tongue.

Anger rises again in her, thinking of what they'd done to him. There had been no yelling by her initially, and she’s regretted it ever since. Little barbed comments come out of her every so often, but she should have yelled, or screamed, or at least belittled them some. It’s been months but she still thinks it every so often. She’d watched him one night not long ago as he’d stretched himself thin working on an equation; manic in his own head trying to prove, to salvage, his work. And she may not understand most of what it is he does, but she realizes not only how much it means to him, but how important his work could be, how important he could be. And that, maybe more than anything, is what makes her heart ache for him. His work has been his life for so long, for long before most people, and to have that threatened must have been a true test of his rigidly held control.

So she pats his knee, even as he twitches away, and tries extra hard to follow his rules tonight. It isn’t much, but Penny isn’t sure she has much to offer. So she keeps an eye on him, lets him beat her in Halo, and doesn’t steal his extra food, despite wanting to. It will have to be enough for now.

 

 

Two days later, Penny is tired and trudging home after a long shift at The Cheesecake Factory and a quick stop at the store. She’d worked a nine hour shift and customers seemed particularly unappeasable today. And she hadn’t had enough money for the groceries she needed, let alone wanted. She’d seen a flyer for a play audition at the grocery store though. Nothing big, just a local theatre company, but she’d taken down the details just in case.

It was Thai food and Halo tonight though, she thought with a smile, hoping the boys had put her order in as well today. She was struggling with the door amidst her grocery bag and purse when a chipper voice called out to her, “Here, let me help you with that” and the door was suddenly out of her way. She tried to locate her savior through the hair that had fallen in front of her face and the grocery bag and she finally shuffled enough to see a woman a few years older than herself holding the door for her.

“Thank you so much,” Penny said as she set down the bag and rooted in her purse to get her mail key out.

She turned after grabbing a stack of bills and caught the woman staring at the elevator “Yeah, it’s out of order. You heading up?” The woman nodded and Penny waved her alongside.

“I love your shoes by the way” Penny said as they started the trek up the stairs. “They look really comfy as well as cute.”

“Oh, they are,” the woman responded. “Hard to find that combination usually. Plus they were on a great sale. I got them in Geneva last time we were there; they have some of the best shops.”

Penny tries not to look envious at that side comment; luckily the woman is still chattering back pleasantly so it isn’t too hard. Geneva sounds nice; heck food sounded nice to Penny today. But the woman was easy to talk to and they continued to exchange small talk on the way up when Penny suddenly realizes she is laughing at a joke the woman has told; a science joke.

The woman's smile brightens at Penny’s laugh. “Not many people get my combined shoe/science jokes,” she says casually.

Penny laughs, “Well I'm a shoe expert and my neighbors are science geeks,” she says with a smile, “starts to rub off.”

Her comment coincides with their arrival in the 4th floor and Penny's eyes widen as the woman stops in front of 4A.

“Are you here for Leonard?” She asks at the same moment the woman says, “Oh, you know Sheldon, then?”

“You're here for Dr. Whack-A-Doodle?” Penny gasps out, and immediately regrets it as the woman's expression turns frosty.

“Excuse me?” She asks tightly.

Penny tries to wave her comments off, despite her full hands. “Just a pet name, me being silly,” she babbles nervously, not wanting to appear any more rude and common that she already has in front of this elegant and intelligent stranger.

“Oh. Ohh,” The woman echoes a second time after a short pause and warning bells go off in Penny's head. “I didn't know he had a ...”

“No!” Penny interrupts her quickly, trying to dispel any thoughts the woman might have. Penny still isn’t sure who she is, but if a girl is visiting Sheldon, she doesn’t want to put her big mouth in it. Suddenly the door to 4A opens forcefully and Sheldon stands lurking in the doorway.

“Penny what in the name of all that...Oh. You've met Emily. Good. Come in.”

Penny walks in, despite still holding her grocery bag, and is about to make a suggestive wink to Sheldon, hoping to make him uncomfortable and possibly reap some information, when she notices the other person in the room; a male that the woman (Emily apparently) goes and stands unduly close to. Leonard, Howard, and Raj are huddled around the non-Sheldon side of the couch and Penny scuttles over to them. She gives Leonard a 'what the hell' look but he merely shrugs in reply. Things have been awkward between them lately as she’s become more and more standoffish. She can’t quite read the look on his face—he almost seems excited, but also confused.

“I'm sorry, Penny, I forgot to include you on the memo about tonight's change in plans.”

Ah, that explains Leonard's look. “So no Thai food?” She asks, surprised at how disappointed she feels. Somewhere along the way, her stomach has gotten used to the food schedule; and she to the company.  

“No, sorry,” Sheldon replies succinctly.

“We're going to the bars though if you'd like to join us?” Howard asks with a leer. And that explains his and Raj's looks as well.

Penny plasters on a fake smile, “Oh, Howard, I'm sorry; I'm too busy being not grossed out in my own apartment.”

Sheldon's breathy little laugh escapes him and she looks up and exchanges a quick grin with him.

“She could come with us,” the woman suggests.

And Penny isn't sure what she's stepped in the middle of, but she feels she should stay out of it. Not to mention that anything that makes Sheldon change his meticulous schedule scares her just a bit. So she begins to politely decline. At the same time Sheldon flatly refuses for her, in not nearly as polite a way as she had planned.

“I'm sure Penny has absolutely no interest in, or even understanding of, the Symposium on Extended Research into Bosonic Theory and Its Relation to Both Pre- and Post-dated M-Theory.”

Penny can practically see all of the capital letters in Sheldon’s speech, just the way he annunciates them and his eyes light up and she knows this event is something he is truly interested in. She tries not to feel hurt or insulted by his words or tone; after all, what he’s said is mostly true.

“I… thank you, really, but I’m sure Sheldon is right. Thank you for the offer though …” Penny trails off. She had caught Emily’s name, but not formally, and doesn’t know how to respond.

“Oh, excuse me, where are my manners, Meemaw would be horrified. Penny, this is Jeremy, a fellow theoretical physicist, and his wife, Emily.”

“Thank you, Sheldon, for the introductions. It’s nice to meet you,” Penny says as she extends her hand to each of them in turn.

“Are you sure you don’t want to come?” Emily asks again. “We’re getting some food before we go.” And Penny’s stomach chooses that exact moment to remind her, and everyone in the room, that she’d skipped all of her meals today. She blushes as Emily laughs.

“It was a busy day,” She whispers lamely, avoiding Sheldon’s eyes. He always could tell when she was lying it seemed, especially if it involved finances.

“Come on, I insist,” Jeremy says jovially, slapping her on the back. “It’ll even out the numbers if nothing else.”

Sheldon, still eying her speculatively, nods his assent, so she relents. She puts her groceries away quickly and then the four of them head down the stairs behind Howard, Raj, and Leonard.

 

 

Penny has a blast—she can’t really believe it. Jeremy and Sheldon are like kids in a candy store at the symposium and she and Emily watch on as they chat and gossip. Penny even manages to understand a few of the things she stops and listens to. Emily, while not a scientist, is still obviously more intelligent than Penny and seems to fit in gracefully. She has also obviously done this circuit a time or two. Penny tries not to embarrass either herself or Sheldon, but it seems to be part of her nature. It isn’t anything formal–just booths and a few talks–so there isn’t anything for Sheldon to be nervous about. But everyone there seems to know who both Sheldon and Jeremy are. Penny almost feels like a celebrity, just having walked in with the two of them. Plus, Sheldon debating is one of the best sights Penny has seen in a while. Not only is he lit up–but watching him eviscerate other scientists seems to awaken a primal glee inside of her. Usually she is the one on the receiving end, and it is surprisingly refreshing to see someone else bear the brunt of Sheldon’s ire.

It is only slightly after ten when Jeremy and Emily drop them back at the apartment building, but it has thrown Sheldon’s schedule off slightly and he is mumbling under his breath about his REM as they climb out of the car and bid them farewell. Penny says yet another heartfelt thanks and wraps up her conversation with Emily.

“You had fun though, didn’t you?” Penny asks with a smile as she holds the door open for Sheldon.

“Of course I did, Penny. Everything about science is fun, even when it deals with the lesser fields.”

It isn’t quite what she meant, but she’ll take it, so she smiles and asks him to try explaining the last presentation they’d seen one more time. He sighs, but the small smile is still lingering at the corners of his lips. Penny isn’t so sure when making Sheldon smile had become such a large part of her life, but she reckons it was sometime after she found out about the North Pole incident. The antics they exchange seem to be a small source of normalcy for Sheldon so she over exaggerates them sometimes in an attempt at keeping them such. She is still shaking her head, trying to grasp his words, as they approach the fourth floor, and they part with small nods of their heads.

 

 

It is another long stressful day of waitressing later that she makes the decision to call the number she’d seen on the theatre advert, tired of feeling like a failure, tired of being unhappy. And another two days before they can make a time work for her to come in. But when she does, she feels like the audition goes well. The two producers she reads lines for seem genuinely interested in her and remarkably nice. The Tinted Grove Theatre is a small theatre–smaller than the one she’d done _Rent_ in, but much nicer (and quieter–no bowling alley for a neighbor here). She'd prepared. Maybe not as much as with some of her bigger auditions, but she’d Googled the play and spent some time trying to get a feel for the characters before she went. She does one of her handful of memorized monologues and feels like it goes well and then the man, older than her but trendy and laid back in a way Penny can only hope to still be at that age, asks her to read a scene with him.

Afterwards, the woman asks about her acting history, acting classes, and long and short term goals and plans. It almost feels like an interview. The woman confesses that they're possibly looking for someone interested in not only semi-steady work but in involvement in both the theatre and company as they try to grow and expand and hopefully work towards producing original content. Penny is interested and it feels like it is a place she could thrive in, and she tells the woman both those things. She mentions the Penny Blossoms randomly and that seems to spark an interest and they discuss costume and set horror stories.

Overall it is the most upbeat about acting she's felt in a while. They promise to get in touch and Penny is practically bouncing as she heads to pick Sheldon up from work. It is her assigned day, and while that usually annoys her, she doesn't let it today. She is a few minutes early, a feat she is sure will impress him. She pulls into the usual parking spot (she still doesn’t understand why he gets an assigned spot when he doesn’t even own a car let alone drive, but she never complains) and hops out. It’ll be fun to surprise him since she is early; Sheldon hates surprises, which makes Penny love them all the more.

His office door is open and she watches him silently for a few minutes. He is engrossed, writing on one of his white boards, splitting time and focus between ferocious scribbles and equally wild erasing. A gaggle of coeds walk by and eye her oddly. She supposes people don’t hang outside Sheldon’s office very often, except maybe in fear. One of the braver guys whistles at her after he walks by and the noise breaks Sheldon from his work.

“Penny.” He states. She pulls away from her post near the door and bursts into the office, all energy and smiles.

“Hey, Sheldor! Ready to go?”

He eyes her, obviously trying to decide if her zeal has a hidden agenda.

“Is your unusual level of giddiness the result of a successful attempt at coitus or is it in hopes of securing some service of value from me? And don’t call me Sheldor when we aren’t playing Age of Conan.”

She laughs, “Can’t I just be happy, Sheldon?”

“Well of course you can, humans have the capability for numerous things in fact, it is just not in the norm for you lately to be quite so euphoric.”

The smile threatens to leave her face, even though she knows he is right, but she manages to hold it. He must catch something on her face however, because in an unusual show he hesitates and looks down at her.

“I… that was not intended as a slight,” he says haltingly and Penny stares at him a moment before a small smile breaks on her face.

“It’s okay, Sheldon. You’re not exactly wrong. I had a good audition today though at a little theatre over on the west end. Think it could amount to something.”

“Felicitations then, Penny.”

She smiles again and, on impulse, hugs him quickly. He tenses, but doesn’t yelp, so Penny counts it as successful. It has only taken their friendship almost two years to get to that point.

“Come on, doctor, doctor, master. Are we grabbing the pizza tonight?” She asks as they head out of his office and towards the exit.

“Yes, I believe it is my turn to be responsible. By the way, Emily says hello. I was asked to pass that along.”

“Oh, cool. Tell her hi back. You guys are keeping in touch then?”

He nods. “She and Jeremy stopped by today. Jeremy is doing a nine month stay in the area as part of his research and has agreed to teach some guest lectures at the university. Dr. Gablehauser was quite excited by the opportunity. He seemed flummoxed that Jeremy and I knew each other. I cannot understand why—surely two of the foremost theoretical physicists in the world should know one another.”

She thinks she knows why. Dr. Gablehauser views Sheldon eerily similar to the way Leonard does, only worse; and if Leonard can comment on the difference in normality between the two, she can only imagine what Gablehauser would have to say about it. She keeps quiet though. Starting in on that with Sheldon is never a good idea, but most especially not when they’re in a moving vehicle.

“Perhaps you can tell her ‘hello’ again yourself,” Sheldon continues. “She and Jeremy have asked if you’d be amenable to joining us for dinner again at some point.”

“I’d like that,” Penny says excitedly. She’s always been outgoing, but has a hard time making true friends. Emily is someone she could see that happening with though, and she’ll take the chances thrown at her.

“Scheduling would be made much easier if you would simply accept my repeated invitations to link our electronic calendars.”

“Sheldon. I don’t want to say it again; that is just weird. I don’t want you seeing all my appointments and I certainly don’t want to be seeing yours. Most married couples don’t even do that, let alone us.”

“I don’t know why you persist in this ridiculous belief that you have any type of privacy. Why, between my eidetic memory, Leonard’s puerile crush, and Howard’s unmatched stalker abilities—I don’t think there’s a moment of your life we’re not aware of.”

She pauses for a shudder before she replies. “Creepy, Sheldon. Seriously creepy.”

“Right. My apologies.” He looks it, too; a slight blush has graced his cheeks and he is staring resolutely out the window and away from her. She lets it drop—trying not to think about just how much the boys might be aware of.

 

They walk into 4A with the pizzas less than half an hour later. Leonard is the only one in, but he announces that Howard and Raj are on their way. Dividing up the pizzas is easy—lactose-free one to Leonard, Howard and Raj are both back on the meatless wagon, so the cheese one goes to them to split. Which leaves Sheldon and Penny with their own. They’ve started branching out lately, as the only two without any weird food regulations or allergies (outside of cleanliness, which Sheldon says ‘ought not be weird’ every time she brings it up), and tonight agreed to try the barbeque pizza. Sheldon had scoffed slightly at the choice, he was a Texan by birth after all, and barbeque was practically second nature to the south.

Sheldon has won the argument over what to watch yet again, not that any of them are actually surprised by that. But it means Doctor Who is in the DVD player, and the newer series at that. Not that Penny minds all that much, she enjoys it more than most of their shows. She and the guys all secretly think that Rose reminds them of her, even though none of them have said it out loud. It is series three, which has neither Nine or Rose, Penny’s favorites, but she still happily tucks in to her food, perched on the couch between Sheldon and Raj. David Tennant is still pretty kickass. Hey, she likes them tall and skinny, can’t help it. And she realizes she’s said that all out loud when all the guys turn to look at her. She blushes and tries to ignore the slightly devastated look on Leonard’s face. And Howard’s. And Raj’s. They’re all short, she realizes, with the exception of Sheldon. And she refuses to think about that, instead turning back to her pizza in silence. They watch three episodes, and have one argument over companion choices, before Sheldon’s schedule says it is time for bed. Sheldon didn’t make her pay for her pizza, yet again, and she cleans up as a mild thank you. She really needs to get her life together, she thinks with a sigh. She’d be broke and starving if it wasn’t for the guys. Well, she is broke and starving, but she’s getting by. The thought kills the contentment that had settled over her and she trudges off to her apartment and flops onto her bed, falling asleep still fully clothed.

 

 

Penny gets a text just as she is getting off of work late the next afternoon.

‘Emily has chosen burgers, despite my insistence that we never have burgers on a Friday. She refuses to see reason. She has requested your presence so please respond with your availability. Dr. Sheldon Cooper’

Even his texts sound like him, and she can’t help but smile. She responds quickly as she walks to her car. ‘Just leaving hell. Need a shower. I can be ready in an hour.’

Her phone chimes again before she has even started the car. ‘Sarcasm on both accounts, correct? I’ll tell the Snows we can meet them in 90 minutes, tops. Dr. Sheldon Cooper.’

She thinks about coming up with some smart ass remark to send back, but decides it isn’t worth it. Her voicemail notification is on though, so she dials in prior to pulling out of the parking lot. And she is glad she did, glad that she isn’t driving while she listens to the message from Amanda at The Tinted Grove Theatre.

They want her to start immediately, if she can. They have a play they’re opening in less than seven weeks, and they want her as the lead, and to help with costumes. They’re willing to work around her current schedule to some extent, and they really think this could be perfect.

The money isn’t great, not enough to be able to quit The Cheesecake Factory, but it’s enough that she’ll be able to catch up on her bills and hopefully stop feeling like a failure all the time. She calls the number back as quickly as she can and they hash out a few quick details and Penny agrees to show up Monday morning.

 

Dinner turns out way better than she expected. She is so happy about her news, that she blurts it out to Sheldon almost the second he finishes his third round of ‘Penny’. She’s pulling the door open and talking at the same time.

“Guess what!?”

“Penny, I don’t guess.”

She whacks him lightly on the arm and he twinges away. She grabs her purse and is glad she decided to put a little extra effort into her look, her good news has boosted her spirits and she is feeling pretty and happy.

“Remember my audition yesterday, at that little theatre? Well, they called me today and they offered me the part. They want me!”

Sheldon is next to her on the stairs as they make their way down. He turns towards he slightly and she can see the small smile on his face.

“Congratulations, Penny. See what a little change and some happiness can do for you.”

A small laugh escapes her. “I’m sorry, are you advocating change? Where is the Sheldon Cooper I know, because I think you’ve stolen his body.”

“While I appreciate your accurate and obvious use of sarcasm,” and at this Penny shoot him a thumbs-up and a wink, which elicits a small, proud smile from him, “I assure you I am definitely the Dr. Sheldon Cooper you know. While I like my routines and the stability of my schedules, change at the base level is what drives humanity. It is what moves us forward. If we cannot embrace change, we cannot accept the universe. It is as simple as that.”

Penny spends a large part of the evening mulling over his words. They’re simple, but they’ve struck a chord with her. She’s been unhappy lately, feeling listless and unmotivated, like she is wandering, and she can’t help but think that change is just what she needs. And that maybe this part with the theatre can be the push that she needs.

They’re at a pub, and she is pretty sure it isn’t a Sheldon approved one, but he’d simply made a face as they walked in and let it rest. If the wink Emily sent her way is any indication, the argument has apparently already been had.

She and Emily chat away as Sheldon and Jeremy talk science, comic books, nuances of working at a university, and even football. Sometimes they join in each other’s conversations, but for the most part the genders split themselves. Penny finds herself enjoying Emily’s company and is fascinated to hear about her life. She is an art professor and part-time curator and while more intelligent than Penny, she is still no match for either Jeremy or Sheldon. Penny can’t help but wonder if that influences their relationship at all. But she supposes it can’t be any more difficult to overcome than their field choices.

“Is that hard–artist and scientist? Do you butt heads?” She asks curiously, once Emily tells her about her profession.

“Not as much as you’d think,” Emily says with a smile.

“The universe is more artistic than you might think,” Jeremy adds on. And the smile he shoots to Emily is so sickly sweet that it should make Penny gag, but it only makes her smile. They are undeniably in love and aren’t the type to make her feel left out, or lord it over her, because of it. Almost anyone else, Penny thinks, and she would have rolled her eyes and laughed, but she doesn’t here. And, more surprisingly, is that Sheldon doesn’t have a smart remark or comment to add to Jeremy’s declaration. She is expecting a rant almost the moment the words have been spoken, but he is staying quiet.

To Penny’s surprise, the meal lasts almost three hours. Sheldon isn’t drinking as usual, but she, Jeremy, and Emily each have two beers and the conversation never seems to lag. They’d ordered appetizers before their meal and worked through it slowly–not on a schedule for once. She only notes two eye twitches from Sheldon–a possible record. It should feel awkward; they’re paired up as if it were a double date. And it is Sheldon she is sitting next to; and everything about that should scream wrong and improbable. But she is simply comfortable and happy and refuses to dissect it. Plus, Sheldon is in a bar (or close enough)–a sight she can readily admit she didn’t think she would ever see.

Penny is reluctant for the night to end–it is the most relaxed she’s felt in months. Emily must read her mind because she is suddenly all smiles.

“I saw a flier that there’s open Roller Derby tonight down at the Meadows.”

Penny lights up and starts to agree when Sheldon’s voice pops up.

“My schedule has been disrupted enough. I told the guys I would be back for at least two rounds of Vintage Video Game Night,” he says stiffly.

Trying not to look disappointed, Penny nods slowly. “Of course, sweetie.”

Jeremy, more perceptive than Sheldon by leaps and bounds (and how did one guy end up cute, sweet, and a freaking genius??) jumps in.

“Why don’t you girls go have fun knocking each other over and taking out your frustrations, and I’ll drop Sheldon off on my way home?”

The look Emily throws him is indiscernible to Penny, some secret married person language she fears she’ll never learn, but she nods her ascent. Sheldon’s face twitches once more, but he too nods in acceptance.

 

And Penny is glad; it is the most fun she has had in years, she thinks. She and Emily are athletic enough that they’re in the middle of the pack—they aren’t the best but they aren’t getting picked over. She’s pretty sure she’s bruised parts of her body she wasn’t even previously aware of, but the smile on her face is genuine. They grab ice cream afterwards and Penny can’t help the number of times she’s been in awe tonight.  She hadn’t realized how much she missed having a close girlfriend, how nice it was to go out and do normal things. She loved the boys and their oddities, but sometimes she needs a break.

 

 

Penny is busy over the next two weeks. She is working almost her usual hours at The Cheesecake Factory, but then she is spending a couple of hours each day at the theatre practicing, as well as rehearsing lines at home. She has also seen Emily three more times, and once has gone out the four of them again. The changes in her life are starting to show, and she is happier than she has been in months. Her part in the play is coming along and as she feels like this could really mean something to her, so she puts in even more effort. And she helps Amanda some with the set and the costumes.

And, suddenly, Emily is there one day, inviting herself along. And Amanda is amazed and ecstatic to have an arts professor assisting. Even if Emily insists she is the epitome of ‘those who can’t do, teach.’ It is fun to work with her on some of the things though, and Penny realizes yet again that it has been awhile since she’s had a girlfriend she could really hang out with.

 

Things with the guys are odd. The five of them have hardly hung out–of the few times she is actually home, either Sheldon is with Jeremy and Emily or if they do spend time together, it seems strained. She can’t quite identify what the shift is, but there is an odd, underlying tension in all of them. She isn’t sure what the guys are like when she isn’t there, if it is better or worse, and she is too scared to ask.

Sheldon is more aware of it than she’d thought, as the one off-hand comment she makes about it to him as she is driving him to work one day, gets answered in an odd yet succinct tone.

“They think, as the perceived and so called ‘normal ones’, they should be the ones to be making new friends and extending their social circle. That they are not makes them feel threatened and nervous, as well as slightly emasculated,” he tacks on with his little laugh.

 

The weather in Pasadena doesn’t vary all that much–not like it did back in Nebraska. It is one of the things Penny loves about California. Sunshine and shorts. She is feeling slightly trapped—having spent the morning in her apartment working on her lines. The boys have just come back from one of their paint ball games, and Penny can tell something has happened. Sheldon has a slight twitch going on above his right eye and the other three are giving him a wide berth.  She knows when they usually get back and has been listening for them in the hallway. It has been a long week and she feels that if she tries to run her lines any more today, she’ll go crazy. So she waits for the boys to give her a distraction. She wants to be outside, but knows the chance of the guys agreeing to that is pretty slim.

She pops out into the hall as they hit the fourth floor and greets them with a smile. The return greetings are all half-hearted at best and Sheldon unlocks the door and disappears inside without more than a nod. Leonard won’t meet her eyes and her expression turns stony. She brushes past the other three after they enter and goes to Sheldon’s door.

Knocking quietly she says, “Sheldon?”

He doesn’t answer and she knocks again, just as quietly. She’s about to turn around when the door cracks slightly.

“Yes, Penny?” And his voice is the same as usual—just as haughty, just as calm. But his face betrays him.

“I need to get out. Want to go watch the trains along the Gold Line?”

He eyes her for a moment, obviously trying to figure out if she has an ulterior motive.

“I can’t run lines any more or I’ll go insane. I want to be out in the sunshine, maybe get some ice cream. You look like you could use some time away. Seems to be a good compromise.” She tries to reason with him.

His stare lasts for another few seconds and is unnerving, but she refuses to look away. Finally he nods. “I’ll knock on your door in ten minutes,” he says and shuts the door before she can respond.

 

Emily texts her while they’re out and she shows it to Sheldon.

‘Jeremy wants to see the new Marvel movie tonight. Not sure I can make it through without either alcohol or a friend. You interested in fulfilling at least one of those?’

“Want to come along?” She asks him after he’s read it.

“Will you talk during the movie?” He asks suspiciously.

“Probably,” she says with a smile, “but we’ll try to keep it to a minimum.”

So he nods, and she texts back, saying she’s bringing Sheldon. And asks if they want to eat beforehand. They spend another hour by the tracks, Penny sunbathing more than anything, and Sheldon talking her ear off about trains and their implicit linkage to Physics.  She mostly ignores him, but smiles and enjoys his company.

 

And somehow this is her life now. She can’t quite complain, but it still seems odd. Two new friends, an acting job, and a sense of purpose—all in the last few weeks. And, she and Sheldon are becoming better friends. Overall, she feels lucky beyond words, even if she is surrounded by geniuses, working at a theatre no one has heard of, waiting tables at The Cheesecake Factory, and living off boxed meals and other people’s take out.


	2. Chapter 2

Part 2

 

 

It is less than a week now until her play is opening and Penny is a mix of excited and nervous. She’s practiced, she knows her lines, and she and the rest of the small cast are convinced it is going to be a success. But so much is riding on it–Penny feels invested in a way she’s never felt in the past. It is making her slightly more flustered than usual.

She is coming home late from the theatre one night, after a full day at The Cheesecake Factory, and texting Emily as she climbs up the seemingly endless stairs to her apartment. Suddenly Howard catches her, corners her practically, between the second and third floors. And he may be the slimy one, but he also tends to be the most verbal, the one more likely to say what is on the group’s minds.

“Well if it isn’t Penny. Long time no see.” And Penny can’t seem to read his voice, though his facial expression is a cross between his usual leer and blatant curiosity.

“Howard. How you been?” She asks cheerfully.

“Not as good as you, apparently.”

That makes her stop. “Excuse me?”

“Just wondering how much longer you’re going to take advantage of Sheldon and his new friends that’s all—how much longer they’ll put up with you. The needy blonde who manages to get all sorts of free food.”

She turns fully towards him now, confused, on guard, and slightly hurt. Just as she is about to respond, he tips his head and disappears down the stairs. It was harsh, even for Howard’s usual antics and bravado, and she can’t figure out where it came from. They haven’t been hanging out as much, but she doesn’t think she’s done anything intentionally rude. The words roll through her head as well. She knows her friendship with the three of them is unusual—compared to them she is practically a failure. But she doesn’t think it’s like that. She hopes it isn’t like that–hopes that they don’t see her like that.

She’s aware enough to know the words aren’t completely true, but they bother her enough that they won’t leave her head the rest of the night. She sleeps restlessly and feels hung over when she wakes up, despite not having had anything to drink.

 

 

 

Jeremy and Emily insist on taking her out for a pre-celebratory dinner the day before the play opens. And she has six tickets for opening night–not just for Jeremy, Emily, and Sheldon, but for Leonard, Howard, and Raj as well. They are still her friends, despite the tension between them, Howard’s latest comments, or the lack of time they’ve been spending together. But just the four of them make plans for the night before, despite any hesitations on Penny’s part.

They’d arranged to pick her up from the theatre prior to going out to dinner, and the three of them stride in just before six. They catch the tail end of the last rehearsal; mostly just set, costume, and sound checks, but it seems to elevate the level of excitement on the stage. This is the first play for most of the cast and Penny is by far the most experienced. They’re all committed though, which is more than Penny can say for some professionals.

After they wrap up, Penny walks out to meet up with them. Sheldon is doing his acoustic check so he knows where to sit tomorrow, and Emily is blatantly baiting and encouraging him as Jeremy rolls his eyes at Penny. She is still feeling just a bit out of sorts after her conversation with Howard the other night and her return smile feels forced. She knows he was just being a dick, just trying to rile her up, but she can’t help the small tendril of doubt that spirals into her. Looking at it objectively, she shouldn’t fit into their little group—they’re all highly intelligent, highly successful people.

 

The dinner starts off awkwardly. Penny is still feeling unsure and the other three have picked up on it, even if they aren’t quite sure what it is. Even Sheldon seems bewildered, and that is saying something. She feels bad as they stumble through conversation, taking drinks of wine as she listens, trying to find her equilibrium again.

Surprisingly, it is Sheldon that breaks the silence on it. “I’m sorry, Penny, have I committed some social faux pas?” She shakes her head. “Slandered your person?” She shakes her head again. “Kicked your favorite puppy?” She stares at him in confusion as she shakes her head one last time.

“I think,” Jeremy cuts in, “what Sheldon is trying to ask, is what’s wrong?”

“Which is exactly what I did ask.” Sheldon huffs quietly. “You have made our dinner uncomfortable and I wish to know why.”

Anger threatens to furl in Penny, even if she knows that Sheldon didn’t mean it quite as it sounded. Instead she just sighs quietly, forces herself to calm down.

“I’m sorry. It isn’t you guys. I just... I’ve been tense lately and Howard...” Sheldon cuts her off abruptly.

“What does Wolowitz have to do with this?” And he sounds almost menacing, something she’d never associated with him before.

“He just said something to me the other day. It was nothing, just got me thinking and I’m sorry, really, we’re okay now. It just threw me off a bit.”

“Good. I don’t like to see my friends in distress. It is quite alarming and disruptive to my schedule.”

And his words, so simple, so very much like him, make Penny smile and the last of her unease disappears. She tries to make up for it through the rest of dinner–chatting happily and smiling. And it almost feels like it was just a few days ago.

Emily gives her an extra-long hug when they say goodbye later, and Penny feels another rush of affections and calming go through her.

“I only met Howard once and was completely unimpressed, and grossed out actually,” she says in consolation. “Don’t let it get to you.”

Penny nods and smiles before she and Sheldon head into the building. They walk up the stairs in silence until they get to the fourth floor landing. Sheldon turns and stares at her momentarily, and Penny is unable to look away. His eyes bore into hers and Penny has never felt so entranced, so laid bare.

“You are a better person than Wolowitz,” he says succinctly. “Don’t ever let him make you think otherwise. Please get some sleep; you need your REM tonight. Break a leg tomorrow, Penny.”

And with that Penny watches him disappear quietly through his door. Her heart is beating faster than usual, and she is sure it is audible in the quiet hallway. She goes into her apartment and stands for a second, trying to collect herself. She sleeps better than she has in weeks.

 

 

 

She tries not to glance out at the crowd, but it is too hard a temptation to resist. The theatre isn’t large–fits maybe 150 people if you’re feeling close to everyone–but it is fuller than she’d thought it might be. She spots her group–dead center in the 5th row where Sheldon had finally declared the acoustic sweet spot after yesterday’s test. And her eyes lock on Sheldon’s and she lets out a small gasp. Maybe it is her nerves playing a part, but his eyes bore into her even more than they did last night. He is staring intently at her and there is a small, pleasant smile on his face. He nods at her and the smile widens to that full-fledged smile she rarely gets to see before he turns back to Jeremy, talking away next to him. It lights up his face.

 

The feelings had begun in her slowly. Or, if she is honest with herself, maybe they'd always been there, festering, simmering away; forming slowly since their first meeting. That first meeting where she still didn't know if she'd meant Beautiful _space_ Mind Genius or Beautiful Mind _space_ Genius, and didn't that keep her up at night, wondering what her subconscious meant those years ago.

So she wasn't sure when exactly it had started, and she still wasn’t fully admitting to it all. But the first moment she had a true flicker was the night he stayed over, when he'd locked himself out. Most social situations seemed to elude Sheldon, and he was callous and arrogant at the best of times. But he seemed so vulnerable, lying there. And his thank you made a smile touch her lips and an odd warm feeling flutter in her stomach. Of course, since it was Sheldon, he spoiled it the next moment by continuing to talk. But it had been there.

And, sure, there'd been that odd moment before that, as she'd stared at him as they looked out his window at her lingerie strewn up the pole, the entire instant rife with an odd underlying tension. If he’d been anyone else she might have kissed him at that point to end the feud, but he wasn’t, so she didn’t.

The next time was similar to the first, with a fragile Sheldon curled up on his bed. She’d wanted to smack Leonard and the boys. Yes, Sheldon drove her crazy, many times in many ways, and the thought of doing something drastic had crossed her mind a time or two since their prank war, but she'd never do something to intentionally hurt him. Especially with his work, which he prided above all else. Penny'd had her share of jealous “friends” over the years that would stab her in the back in an instant given the chance, but she never thought these boys could stoop so low.

All of the moments seemed to be culminating now that they were spending so much more time together, as they’ve integrated themselves as separate from the other guys and into their strange little foursome with Emily and Jeremy. They were flickering in her mind with more frequency now, unwilling to be ignored. And to see Sheldon smile at her like that had made her stomach do a little flip.

She can’t let herself get distracted by this now though, not when there is so much hanging on tonight. The play must go on. Sometimes, though, she wishes she could see into his head. She can't figure out how much of it all he actually understands or if some of his social awkwardness is simply a barrier he constructed himself. Penny imagines it makes some things easier, to have a permanent built in excuse for being rude.  But in cases like this she’d quite like to have a little insight into his mind–see if he realizes what his actions may have meant, how they could have been construed.

 

The night goes well and they are all thrilled with the result. It isn’t Broadway, but they all keep in character, remember their lines, and there are no major catastrophes. Penny gets a standing ovation at the end and is so pleased and excited she hugs all of her friends in turn, not letting any residual tension break her mood. The seven of them go out for a drink afterward–and it is fun and strained at the same time. They segregate themselves around the booth–Jeremy and Emily on one side, Howard, Leonard, and Raj on the other. And Penny and Sheldon are awkwardly in the middle. They only stay for one drink, but they all toast to Penny and it doesn’t sound forced. Sheldon’s Cuba Libre is still virgin, and the guys start to mock it when Emily cuts them off with more gushing about the play. She’s never put up with any of their crap and Penny loves that about her. At the end of the night Penny is so happy and her face hurts from all the smiling she has done.

 

The play gets a small write up in the paper the next day, and it won’t break them all into stardom, but it makes Amanda and Tim smile widely at her when she shows up in the morning. They’re doing three more runs of it over the next week and a half and the dates and times are listed in the article. They hope it will bring in a few more patrons.

Her performance seems to have been enough proof and encouragement that Tim asks for her input on the next play they want to do and they talk through the pile he has it narrowed down to. They manage to narrow it further down to just _The Glass Menagerie_ , _boom_ , and _A Streetcar Named Desire_. Cast availability and Amanda’s thoughts will be the final deciders.

 

 

For some reason, Sheldon is hanging out with her backstage before the second run of the play. Well, she thinks she knows why, but one can never be too sure with Sheldon. She certainly hadn’t meant to break down in tears in front of him. Sheldon hardly knows what to do with people on a normal day, but crying people are certainly not his forte.  But she’d called her mom to tell her about the play, so very excited, and got a lecture instead. And when she’s gone into 4A already upset, Howard and Leonard had a called out cheap parting shots as she came to tell them she was leaving for the play. Somehow out of that it ended with Sheldon stalking out of the apartment and tagging along.

“Ugh,” she groans out, looking in the mirror of the small dressing room. “I look all splotchy!” She laments.

“Yes, you do,” Sheldon responds calmly, standing stiffly beside her. She reaches over to smack him lightly on the arm.

“Hey!” she exclaims.

He looks at her with a confused face, “Is this one of those times I'm supposed to lie in order to make you happy?” His face begins to twitch at the mere thought.

“No, just help me fix it,” she replies.

“You know, you really shouldn't cry right before a show,” Sheldon scolds her blankly, but he hands her makeup bag over without complaint. Their hands brush slightly and Penny tries to ignore the flare that goes through her mind, thoughts drifting to her realizations the night before.

“Gee thanks, why didn't I think of that?” she responds sarcastically in distraction.

He stares at her for a moment, “I don't know but maybe you'll remember in the future,” he replies.

She groans. “Sarcasm, Sheldon,” she says.

“Oh drat,” he responds, “and I'd been doing so well this month.”

She finishes touching up her makeup and applying more concealer around her eyes and turns to him. He is standing perfectly still.

“I wish for you to know that I do not share Leonard and Wolowitz’s rather misplaced sentiments on the matter,” he states, looking at a place slightly over her right shoulder.

And, damn him, she’d just fixed her makeup. She tells him that as she reaches out to hug him. In an unusual display he pats her back gingerly and does not pull away.

“I had not intended to make you cry.”

“I know, sweetie,” she says with a smile. “Thank you. Now I need to get into costume so go take your seat before you lose it to someone who doesn’t appreciate its acoustic value.”

 

The theatre is almost as full for both the second and the third showing as it was for the first—and the people there are more actual attendees as opposed to just friends and family. And the fourth showing is almost packed. There had been another article prior to the closing matinee and they are all astounded. The entire cast (all 6 of them) jumps up and down backstage afterwards. Amanda and Tim ask her to stay on semi-permanently and she hugs them both in response. It’s happiness and reality and completion rolling up into one.

 

 

Through it all, over the weeks, there are those thoughts lingering in the back of Penny’s mind that center on Sheldon. Memories playing on loop of food, smiles, games, arguments, and hugs. It is, however, Emily that brings it all to a head. They are hanging out, just her and Emily, in the midst of a casual little party that Jeremy and Emily are throwing at the house they were renting. Jeremy and Sheldon had absconded upstairs earlier and came back in full Superhero attire and are currently in the corner discussing, arguing over, something or another and she and Emily are watching them idly as they gossip and vent. They both have fake weapons out and Penny is a tad nervous about the entire situation.

“I bet he's great in the sack,” Emily says out of the blue.

Penny turns to look at her in surprise and shock, “Sheldon!?” She practically squeaks. “What do you mean?”

“Just imagine all that intensity and passion and those eyes, focused on you. Can you imagine all that, directed at you one hundred percent? Hot,” she breaths out.

“Emily!” She exclaims with a shocked giggled. And, yes, Penny has thought of Sheldon in vague non-platonic ways, but she had never thought of it quite like that–but now she seems unable to get it out of her head. She watches a bit more; Sheldon _is_ very focused.

“I'm pretty sure he's asexual actually,” Penny adds. Emily turns to her with a look like surprise on her face.

“Really?” She asks.

“Well I'm not sure, I guess,” Penny says. “Don’t think any of us are sure if he actually has a deal or not, never asked either, but I’ve always kind of classified him that way in my head. Makes it easier,” she adds absently at the end. She only realizes she’s said it when Emily half squeals.  She manages to compose herself somewhat as Penny blushes, and continues on.

“I don’t know; I’ve got a good friend back in New York who’s an ace. Absolutely nothing wrong with it—I’m just surprised, that isn’t quite the impression I’ve gotten from him. He has a great capacity—so lovable and so able to love. I think he just hides it away behind his routines; it keeps him safe. He doesn’t know how not to control a situation.”

Penny turns to survey Sheldon once more, trying to see him from Emily’s point of view. She stares, open curiosity on her face, as he and Jeremy continue whatever they’re acting out. It is still Sheldon, still the same attitude and mannerisms, but somehow different. There is a slight calm to him, a bit more confidence. And he should have looked ridiculous in what he was wearing, but something makes it work. He is in his element here in a way that previously Penny had only witnessed when he was engrossed in an equation—at ease and confident. And damn if it doesn’t make him look happy. And strangely alluring.

“You’re thinking about it now, aren’t you?” Emily says with an evil laugh. And Penny loves that they are friends now, loves that she has a girl to dish to, but one who isn’t a total fluff.

“Thanks to you,” Penny grumbles, still blushing.

“Oh, come, on, you really never thought about it before?”

“Not so explicitly. I mean, sure, of course I have. When we first met, I thought, ‘oh, he’s smart and kind of cute’, but then he opened his mouth. And then Leonard kind of happened, and now we’re friends and it’s okay.”

“And you’re fine settling for ‘okay’?” She asks, slight derision filling the last word, but not in a mean way. “You haven’t been on a date since we met, have you? And you have to tell me about Leonard. I’m curious about that. He seems a little…well; I would just be surprised at anything between the two of you after having met him.”

“Yeah, no dates for me, decided to take a bit of a break as I try to get a few things together with my life, don’t need that complicating the process any more. And I don’t miss the random dates and hook-ups so much, but I do miss the sex a bit,” she confesses. “And waking up in someone’s arms. But not enough to be desperate about it. I want to be done with that whole part of my life.”

Emily nods her agreement. “What was it about Leonard that made you change your mind about him?”

Penny sighs. “I thought it would be nice to not date a total jerk for once when I first thought about dating Leonard, someone smart and decent. But then…it was a lot of things. He was so desperate about it—and while I knew he respected me, I still felt like part of him just wanted to date the pretty blonde. And because of that he wasn’t… wasn’t strong enough. I don't need someone who will let me walk all over them and have my way. I need challenge and fighting—someone who will make me want to do better and to be better and to help me get there, not simply plunk me down there. I'm not weak but I need the confidence of that believer. Leonard doesn’t have enough confidence to spare—he generally doesn’t even cover himself in that regard. And, well, they did something to Sheldon a while back that made me not so happy–I saw him in a different light after that.”

“The North Pole thing?” Emily asks and Penny nods in response. “He didn’t go into any details but it didn’t sound good.”

“Looking back, it was the catalyst for a lot of change in our group.”

The discussion continues for a few more minutes over Long Island Iced Teas before they force themselves to get up and mingle. As host, Emily feels it is an obligation, and she makes Penny help her out. The day is gorgeous and everyone is littered about the back yard and the deck. It is an eclectic mix—science enthusiasts, art students and connoisseurs, comic book geeks, two fashion models Emily met somewhere; the list goes on a bit. But they aren’t segregating themselves and Penny loves that; loves that she doesn’t have to choose between groups or people and that no one is hiding or embarrassed.

She stays long past the end of the party and ends up sleeping on the couch in their living room. Sheldon has even stayed, taking over the guest room quickly. She wakes up in the morning to sun streaming through the windows and the sounds of a quiet conversation in the attached kitchen. Stumbling in looking for coffee she feels awkward as Jeremy and Sheldon stop their conversation to look up at her. They’re making eggs and bacon as they talk. Sheldon points to the coffee pot as he turns back to the stove.

“Thanks,” she mumbles, still waking up.

It is Saturday but Penny still has to work. She stretches a bit as she steals a piece of bacon that is cooling on a napkin.

“I’ll need to leave in a bit so I can get ready for work, Sheldon. Want me to take you back?”

Sheldon throws a quick, desperate glance towards Jeremy and that strange little awkward feeling tips through her again.

“I’ll get him home,” Jeremy responds, also turning towards the stove, away from Penny.

“Oh, okay. We’ll I’ll just… is Em up yet?”

“Here I am!” Emily exclaims brightly right on cue, walking into the kitchen still clad in her pajamas. “What’s up?”

“Was just going to come find you to say goodbye. And thank you for letting me crash.”

“You’re leaving already?” Emily asks with a pout.

Penny forces a laugh. “Got to go get pretty before work you know.” And she tries not to literally run, she really does, but she’s sure it still looks like she’s running away.

 

It is a weird week as Penny still isn’t sure what had occurred in the Snow’s kitchen, and isn’t sure she wants to; hurt at even the top layer of it all. She isn’t avoiding Sheldon exactly, but they don’t see much of each other and so it isn’t until Thursday that Penny hears about the reception on Saturday night (“obligatory function” as Sheldon calls it). Jeremy and Emily are going, as is Sheldon. It isn’t being technically hosted or attended by CalTech so his presence is not required, but once he’d heard about the invite, Gablehauser had heavily inferred that Sheldon should attend if he valued both his life and his job. Sheldon isn’t particularly happy about that, and he doesn’t want the other guys to know about it, let along ask to go, which is why the topic had not yet come up. He’s nervous enough about it—having to play nice and be a spokesperson not just for theoretical physics but for CalTech as well.

So Penny asks about it while they’re all out for dinner; tries to pry some information out of him. She finds out it is a formal party—there will be drinks, dinner, and most likely dancing. Stephen Hawking will be there, and Neil deGrasse Tyson as well as a few French names that Penny doesn’t recognize. It is being held at the California Science Center: ticket limitations, big names, and open bar. It sounds big and important, and Penny says so.

“It must be an honor to even get invited,” Penny says, proud of Sheldon.

Emily’s eyes suddenly light up and she suggests that Sheldon take Penny, tries to convince him what a great idea it is. Sheldon has a deer in the headlights look on his face and Jeremy is quite obviously hiding laughter behind his hand.

“Come on, your ticket is for two people! It will be a blast,” Emily adds enthusiastically when neither Sheldon nor Penny seem to react. Penny would love to go, swanky parties were practically made for her, but she doesn’t want to say that out loud, not after seeing Sheldon’s panicked reaction. Something however must show on her face, or the universe is tipping in her favor because Sheldon simply says. “I suppose that would be acceptable.”

 

 

She forces him to go shopping Saturday morning.

“I question your premise. How is a new suit going to help calm my nerves or make me feel better about this entire endeavor? And why is it necessary?”

“It’ll give you confidence, and make you look good. I just don’t understand. For someone who prides themselves so much on their work, don’t you want to show it off proudly?” Penny asks him.

“Of course I do. I’m just saying that I shouldn’t have to dress it up to make it palatable.”

“Yes, but you also need to stop getting fired for being an ass.” She responds shortly. He looks affronted for a moment before she continues. “It doesn’t have to be fake; it doesn’t have to mask it. But if it will get people to listen to you, possibly get you more funding, isn’t a nice suit and a smile worth it?”

Sheldon stares at the floor before he nods, though she can tell he still isn’t fully convinced. Penny knows Sheldon sees his body as a simple tool that often gets in his way. She can only imagine how gangly and awkward he was as a child, if current state is any indicator. And he dresses for comfort because that is what makes sense to him.

“You wear your plaid suit, and the first thing people are going to think about when they meet you is how ugly it is. You wear something decent and the first thing they’re going to think about is your work. Isn’t that preferable?”

He grumbles his consent. “Human beings are fickle,” he says morosely.

“I know, sweetie. I know.”

 

It takes three stores and six tries before Penny can finally convince him that traditional is the way to go. They’d found her dress first—a simple knee-length wine/burgundy cocktail dress—and at the third store they manage to find a tie that matches it almost perfectly. A simple black suit and vest complement his tall form and Penny is pretty sure that her jaw dropping when he walked out of the dressing room is the only thing that convinced Sheldon to purchase it. The slight blush that creeps up his cheeks is adorable and Penny’s brain is running away from her.

 

 

They arrive at the party by limo, none of them wanting to worry about details such as driving or parking. It starts off well as they all file in together and stick with Sheldon for most of the initial introductions. Drink and mingling are first on the docket and Jeremy and Sheldon make an amazing duo as they head off to double team unsuspecting donors.

Penny, grabbing her third glass of wine but trying to pace herself, is watching with blatant awe and admiration on her face as the two of them discuss some aspect of their work with two other attendees. For once, Sheldon looks like he fits in here, like the master of his field that he is. She doesn’t mind his usual layers, has grown rather fond of them in fact, but the suit does wonders for him, and he seems to have a bit more confidence—whether it is just the new clothes like Penny had said, or whether it is something else; all of the last weeks wrapped up. Finding a true friend, one who respects and admires his work, has changed him for the better. He and Jeremy work well together, have an accord that comes naturally and minds that should scare the rest of the world.

Looking around she takes a slow, shallow breath as realization dawns on her. The people in this room are some of the foremost minds in science in the current times. And Jeremy and Sheldon are probably right up at the top of them. She is literally looking at the people that could single handedly save or destroy the world as they know it, Sheldon included. The thought is frightening, though maybe not as frightening as it would have been just a few months ago. She thinks the scales, for Sheldon at least, are tipped a little more towards the ‘save’ outcome than the ‘destroy’ one—a statement she may not have been so sure of not long ago. She’d like to think she has played a small part in that. Her thoughts must show on her face because Emily sidles a little closer to her.

“Overwhelming when you realize it, isn’t it?” Emily asks quietly, hiding her face slightly behind her wine glass.

“I…yeah,” Penny responds helplessly.

“I remember the first time the CIA called Jeremy,” Emily continues; and Penny turns to her in slight shock. “Not officially classified, so I can at least tell you that it happened, if not the details” she says with a smile.

And Penny didn’t think things like that actually happened, figured it was only in the movies that the government had secret scientist teams on call, but maybe it does. She stares at Sheldon for a moment, wondering.

Emily is slightly tipsy—she must be by what she whispers next. “It was kind of hot actually. Secret spy stuff is kind of a turn on.”

The laugh is startled out of Penny and she covers her mouth just in time that it isn’t disruptive. But it is genuine and she nods a reluctant agreement to Emily.

“I could see that I guess.”

“Are you two ever going to stop dancing around each other and admit anything?”

“Hey, you already got me to admit more than I was willing to.” Penny exclaims.

“I know. Jeremy’s been working on Sheldon for you.”

“What?” Penny gasps. “You told Jeremy?” And she wonders if that explains the awkwardness last Saturday morning.

“Oh, please, honey. Like it’s a secret to anyone except the two of you. We said your names, exchanged looks, and that was that. And Sheldon is... well. Sheldon is Sheldon so nothing is going to be easy, but look at his life; you’re about the only one he lets close, think about what that means.”

“He’s only just stopped twitching every time I touch him. I don’t know if we could be compatible.”

“I think you’ll find there’s a slow path to middle ground there. You both mean a lot to each other and you care for each other–that’s better groundwork than a lot of marriages.”

Penny stares a little more, watches them wrap up their conversation and Sheldon turns, looking for her and a small smile crosses his lips when their eyes meet. Penny’s heart does a little flip. Maybe this isn’t so crazy after all.

Emily, watching her, laughs just a bit. “Go ask him to dance.”

And Penny could blame the wine, the ambiance, Emily’s interference; but she drowns the rest of her glass of wine and heads purposefully towards Sheldon. Jeremy is watching them with avid interest as she approaches.

“Dance with me, Sheldon?” She asks.

“I’m quite sure we’ve covered this previously, Penny. I don’t dance.”

“Dance with me, please, Sheldon.” she repeats, lowering her voice, emphasizing the please. And she steps up close to him, puts one hand on his chest and the other at his shoulder.

She seems to have finally fazed him completely as he simply nods and looks down at her, a slightly confused look on his face. They walk slowly to the dance floor and he begins to lead her in a slow, but perfect, waltz.

A slow awestruck smile spreads across her face and she shifts herself minutely closer. “What happened to ‘Penny, while I subscribe to the many worlds theory which posits the existence of an infinite number of Sheldons in an infinite number of universes, I assure you that in none of them am I dancing.’?”

“Bazinga,” he whispers.

She pulls her head back slightly, just enough to catch the look on his face. She almost kisses him now; that playful smile of his does something to her. He starts talking again before she can give in, before she can ruin it.

“I believe social protocol dictates that I compliment you on your looks tonight.”

“You clean up pretty well yourself, MoonPie,” Penny says with a laugh. “I’ve grown to love your superhero shirts, but this is a nice break.”

They dance two more songs before Sheldon’s right hand starts twitching slightly and Penny takes pity on him. Dinner will be served soon anyway so they head off to find Jeremy and Emily, who have been on the dance floor as well, locked in a somewhat more scandalous embrace.

 

All-in-all the night seems to be a roaring success. They all have fun, eat ridiculous amounts of good food, three of them drink also ridiculous amounts of free alcohol, Sheldon has his business card out to four different possible benefactors, and everyone is happy. The short car ride back to Pasadena reduces Penny’s tipsy state to a happy buzz and she and Sheldon climb out of the limo with numerous goodbyes.

Penny stops him before they enter the apartment complex.

“Thank you, Sheldon. For taking me tonight. I had a lot of fun.”

Sheldon’s voice is surprised as he responds, “You’re welcome. It should have been a stressful and pointless endeavor, but it was not. I am slightly mystified.”

Before she can question or second guess herself, Penny reaches up and grabs lightly onto the lapels of his jacket. Her heels make her only an inch or so shorter than him and she stretches on her tiptoes and brings her lips to his. It isn’t a long kiss—she doesn’t want to scare him too badly—but her hand splays against his chest and she is tempted to melt against him. He hasn’t moved to respond, but he isn’t pulling away either, so she hasn’t completely broken him. And somehow Penny finds it in her to pull away after only a handful of seconds. She turns and opens the door and holds it open for him. After a moment’s hesitation he walks through and they climb the stairs side by side in silence.

As they go to part ways at their doors, Sheldon turns to Penny.

“I…”

“Tomorrow. I promise.” Penny says. And she squeezes his hand—a safer option she decides.

 

 

 

It is 11:01 on the dot the following morning when Penny hears the rhythmic knock and her name, three times as always. She opens the door and Sheldon walks briskly past her and stands awkwardly behind the couch.

“It is now tomorrow,” he states plainly.

“It is,” she says with a sigh. “Listen, Sheldon,” she begins. She’s rehearsed this—all last night and all this morning. She’d even gone as far as texting Emily to let her know, hoping to get some advice. She’d received a random string of characters in reply and didn’t want to think too closely on whether Emily was just that excited or if she’d been accidentally texted in flagrante. She is prepared to be ready to write it all off and salvage their friendship the best she can.

“I'm concerned,” Sheldon says, instead of whatever she is expecting. “We're very different people with very different lifestyles. What if it doesn't work?”

A moment’s pause. “But what if it does?” Penny asks with a small smile, unable to help it. That Sheldon is even considering this is proof to Penny.

“So I'm supposed to live my life diving head-on into things?” Sheldon asks “That is not who I am.”

“I know sweetie,” Penny says, “and that's not what I'm suggesting. I'm suggesting…I’m suggesting that we simply learn how to swim.”


	3. Chapter 3

Part 3

 

“But I already know how to swim,” Sheldon states plainly. “I learned online.”

“Yes. And we’re going to do the same thing.”

“Practice swimming on the floor?” He asks in confusion.

A laugh pops out before she can stop it. “No, sweetie. But we’ll ‘dry practice’ a bit as well before we actually hop in the water.”

“You are referencing coitus?”

“Well, yes and no. I know this is all new to you. But I’d like to think this is all new to me a bit as well—time to be serious and happy with someone. We’ll go slow, Sheldon, if that’s what you need. But it has to be a compromise—a two-way street. I’m going to respect you, but you have to understand that I’ll have wants as well. We’ll both be learning things. Okay?”

He stares at her a moment before, so quickly she hardly has time to notice it, he leans over and places a chaste but soft kiss on her lips.

“I acknowledge and accept our paradigm shift. Shall we discuss the contract? I can retrieve my ‘pact pen’ from my desk drawer.”

“Woah, Sheldon…no. You may have a roommate agreement with Leonard but I am not signing something between us.”

“But how will we decide parameters? Or establish who will be the default winner in each stipulated argument scenario?”

Penny’s heart does that odd little flip thing again. She gazes at the man she’s come to care so very much for. She knows he despises arguing—knows it stems from his childhood. And he’s not a child, she knows that, but there are some things he just never learned, whether due to how he was raised or his lack of a true childhood and friends. He’d been thrust into growing up so quickly by his own mind and she can’t help but feel for him. She wasn’t sure he’d even had friends prior to Leonard, and she certainly didn’t think Leonard was the best introduction to friendship.

“Oh, sweetie—we’ll be our own parameters.”

“What? Penny that doesn’t even make sense.”

“Does it have to?” She asks and he immediately scoffs and opens his mouth to begin to refute her. She beats him to it however.

“I didn’t mean that exactly. But…we’re like our own little universe now,” she says, proud of herself for relating it to his work. “We can’t be like the other universes because they’re all different, right?” And he nods, slowly if not skeptically. “And we just discovered this universe, right? So we don’t know much about it yet. How could we put limits and definitions on it? We don’t know what it’s made out of, except its basic components,” she says with a gesture towards each of them. “We don’t know what makes it tick, what makes it thrive. And wrapping it up and defining it without research would be like confining it to non-evolution, don’t you think?” She ends proudly.

She can tell Sheldon wants to mock her, wants to tear apart her little speech and its attempts at science. So it wasn’t precisely accurate, but it made sense, dammit. But he doesn’t say anything. And that alone tells her almost all she needs to know.

“Now, if you don’t mind, I would like to take you out on a date tonight,” Penny adds on with a smile.

“Penny, I believe that is my duty to ask.”

“Well ask away then, MoonPie.”

“Our change in relationship status does not grant you license to call me MoonPie, Penny. Only Meemaw has earned that right.”

“Whatever you say, sweetie. Now tell me about what plans you have for us for tonight then.”

“I will pick you up at seven. You will have to drive us, if that is acceptable. We’ll have dinner. I don’t know what etiquette states is acceptable after that, so perhaps we can just ‘wing it’ as they say. I will do some research online for it this afternoon though to prevent anything untoward occurring.”

“That sounds perfect, sweetie,” Penny replies, already making contingency plans in her head, aware of how ridiculous Sheldon’s attempts at ‘winging it’ might be.

“Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll need to do my laundry early in order to accommodate this change in schedule.”

“Okay, sweetie. I’m going to do my own cleaning and get ready. I’ll see you at 7.”

 

She cleans her bedroom first—eternal optimist that she is. But she also does a cursory cleanup of the rest of her apartment. She’ll never be as clean as Sheldon, or as organized, but she makes a small effort. It wears her out and she gets bored after only an hour.

Emily had sent a text response this morning—half mortification of her response last night and half utter glee at the news of the kiss. Penny finally responds and updates her on the events of the morning and Emily is equally as enthusiastic about it. It’s nice to have someone rooting for you, Penny realizes. After that, checking her email proves to be a worthwhile distraction as Tim has sent a script for her to read. It isn’t the next one they’re doing, but a script from a local writer that the theatre is hoping to pair with. She spends the next two and a half hours reading through it. It’s good. It isn’t Shakespeare by any means, but she laughed out loud a few times and really enjoyed the characters. The lead was a strong female protagonist with a penchant for accidental murder. She really thinks it could work for them and knows she would thrive in the main role.

She sends back a note praising it and says they’ll talk more but that she thinks it is perfect for the theatre. Then, she takes a long bath, shaves, and does her hair and make up. Then she spends five full minutes staring at her closest, trying to decide what to wear. Sheldon’s seen her in all of her clothes at some point or another, and after last night he’s now also seen her dressed to the nines. He also is not influenced by her choice of clothing to any extent worth noting. She doesn’t know where he is taking her either, so she settles for a lightweight sundress in a deep blue color. It isn’t fancy, especially compared to last night, but it looks nice and it isn’t beachwear.  She curses herself for not asking for more specifics.

 

It is seven on the dot and she’s pulling the door open and just starting to greet him when she stops short. Sheldon is dressed up. Oh, not at much as last night, but she hadn’t expected him to be. She’d hoped for at least one of his semi-normal, semi-matching tee-shirts, but his usual look has simply been upgraded slightly. His pants, black and grey dress slacks that actually pass for respectable. And his shirt is a solid color. It is still a tee-shirt, and there is still a layer underneath it. But they’re both solid, grey-toned and compliment the slacks instead of clashing. The double take she does is way beyond obvious, but she can’t quite help it. Her smile broadens widely.

“Hey there, MoonPie!” She says with a wink.

He sighs, sounding very put upon, but a small smile graces his lips.

“I’ve managed to successfully evade Leonard, Wolowitz, and Koothrapoli. I wasn’t sure what your wishes were in regards to their knowing about our recent change in status.”

She grimaces. “Yeah, I’m not sure we need to go there quite yet. They haven’t earned it lately anyway. I did tell Emily, I hope that’s okay.”

Sheldon nods. “I also shared the news with Jeremy.”

Grabbing her purse she smiles and nods, pleased beyond telling about the situation at hand. She loops her arm through his and they head off down the stairs.

 

“I chose the nicest restaurant on my pre-approved list. I hope it meets your ‘date night’ standards. With very little to compare it to, I had to trust google and a somewhat shady website called ‘Cosmo’.”

Penny bursts out laughing at this; and she wonders how exactly her life turned out to be this, to be here with this man. She is thankful that it has though–she is happier in the last few weeks than she thinks she ever has been.

The restaurant is a small Greek place and she wonders why, if it is a ‘Sheldon approved restaurant’ they’ve never had food from it. Sheldon apparently knows her well enough to figure out what she is thinking.

“Raj refuses to eat Greek food, and Leonard doesn’t like any of the dairy-free menu options so we never eat here.”

“I haven’t had Greek food in ages, this will be exciting.”

One of Sheldon’s rare, true smiles peaks through. “I am pleased.”

The meal goes better than Penny could have imagined or hoped. There aren’t any awkward pauses like there usually is on a first date–they move seamlessly in conversation just like they do on any other day or place. She orders a gyro and a Greek Salad, he orders the moussaka. Despite Sheldon’s usual stance on sharing food, he lets her try a bite and she hums in approval. She has a glass of wine and he has his usual Diet Coke.

They order dessert, baklava, and Penny goes to grab Sheldon’s hand as they wait for it to arrive. He flinches minutely and his eyes dart towards her, but he doesn’t pull away. She smiles at him and he relaxes a fraction. It isn’t completely, but its enough that she no longer feels as if she is holding the hand of a statue. She wants to ask him how he’s doing, how he feels about everything but she’s scared, worried she’ll frighten him. Unbidden, Mary Cooper’s words float in her mind. (“You’ll spook him. He’s like a baby deer, you gotta let him come to you.”) Penny isn’t naturally careful, isn’t naturally slow moving. But she thinks, for Sheldon, she wants to be.

“Do you remember when we first met?" She asks instead of what she wants to ask, what she wants to blurt out. Those words scare her as well as whatever they’d do to Sheldon.

“Of course I do, Penny, I possess an eidetic memory.”

“Did you ever think we’d end up here? Ever wonder about it?” And, judging by his reaction, it may have still been too much to ask. His eyes dart quickly down to their entwined hands, her fingers still stroking across his knuckles, and up to a point beyond her shoulder.

“I had wondered, that first day. But it was more a cursory interest mixed with confusion. It quickly faded. And then, despite all evidence to the contrary and all typical social protocols, you became my friend. And I attempted to understand our friendship and anything else did not occur to me as possible or prudent. Until you were the one to stay true to me. It took us a while to get here, but I think we are the better for it.”

She nods. It isn’t a romantic declaration that would make it into any books, but it is Sheldon and she feels warmed by it just the same. They finish and Sheldon pays, while reminding her that it is indeed his social obligation and right to do so. His unique innocence is oddly endearing. It is such an integral part of him anymore she usually just sees it as part and parcel.

“Thank you, Sheldon. This was really nice,” Penny says as they leave the restaurant and climb into the car.

“You’re most welcome, Penny,” he replies and pauses slightly, eyes shifting towards Penny. “Are you amenable to another activity or would you like to head home?”

“Did you plan something, ‘Mr. Wing it’?” She asks with a flirtatious smile.

“That would be ‘Dr. Wing It’ to you, but yes. I...I hope it is something you’ll find suitable.” Penny can’t help but find his nervousness adorable. “The planetarium is hosting their monthly ‘Star Bar’–an attempt at a cute and clever play on words obviously. It is casual, so we wouldn’t have to stay very long if you didn’t end up liking it, and I believe, based on the moniker, that there will be alcohol involved.”

“Sure, Sheldon, we can give it a whirl. I just reserve veto right once we get there, okay?” He nods and Penny starts the car and drives off.

 

“Apparently I should have claimed veto rights as well,” Sheldon whispers to her forty-five minutes later. They are reclined back in chairs staring at the projected night sky and listening to a speaker.

“I’m not even convinced this so-called employee passed junior high science, let alone anything involving actual astronomy, as much hokum as that is at times,” he continues on.

 Penny is enjoying it though. She has a glass of wine and is leaning in slightly towards Sheldon, listening to his voice and taking in his mere presence. The planetarium is pretty, even if some of the information is apparently inaccurate. Sheldon scoffs again and Penny grabs his arms and intertwines it with hers. He stares at it, momentarily distracted from his ongoing rant. Science is Sheldon’s life, and mocking the ‘lesser sciences’ has always been a part of that. That she, Penny, can distract him from that is a heady thought.

“Alright MoonPie, we can go if you are ready.”

“Really?” He asks, as he practically rockets out of his chair in haste. She giggles and stands up to follow him, trying to keep low and out of the way. Sheldon has no such thought, as he stalks through the domed theatre on a mission to evacuate. They’re just about out when Sheldon suddenly yells out. “Astronomy is hokum and I am pretty sure this ‘Steve’ character didn’t even graduate the 8th grade!” Penny, mortified, pushes him out of the theatre and practically drags him out of the building.

“Sheldon!” She exclaims once they are outside, and she turns to look at him. He has a wild look of glee and abandon on his face and his breathy little laugh is out in full force.

“That was fun, Penny. Thank you,” he says with another wide smile.

“You, Sheldon Lee Cooper, are crazy,” Penny responds with a laugh.

“No I’m not, my mother had me tested. You know this, Penny.”

“You’re right, I do. And that wasn’t quite what I meant this time. Let’s head home.”

 

They are standing outside of 4B slightly awkwardly. Penny considers inviting him in, but doesn’t want to make it more awkward, or to make Sheldon feel uncomfortable.

“I am not sure the protocol on ‘coming in’ after dates when the two parties are already often in each other’s apartments anyway and subsequently live across the hall.”

“We can make our own rules, Sheldon. Why don’t you come in for just a minute or two, okay?”

He nods slowly and follows in behind her. She flips on the light and takes her shoes off and throws them into the closet. The apartment is respectably clean, for her, and Sheldon sits stiffly on the couch, watching her with attentive eyes.

“Would you like some tea, sweetie?” She asks, trying to help him relax. Seriously, she wasn’t going to suddenly ravish him right here and now, even if the thought had crossed her mind.

“Did you have a good time?” She asks as she flips the switch on her coffee maker to heat up the water.

“Surprisingly, yes. When I began my research on the customs of dating, I was a bit concerned by some of the folly that seemed to typically occur. That none of it ensued makes me quite pleased. Plus, I’ll admit a certain additional satisfaction in disparaging that poor excuse for an employee at the Planetarium.”

Penny’s sharp burst of giggle surprises both of them. “Sorry, sweetie. I’m just happy and that startled me.” She comes over to stand near Sheldon. “It was the best date I’ve had in a really long time, possibly ever,” she tells him seriously.

He looks at her slightly askance but nods in acceptance of her statement. “It is almost time for me to retire so that I may somewhat keep my REM cycle, but there was one event that was in every piece of information I read. So, I would like to kiss you goodnight before I leave, if that is amenable to you.”

His words are still stiff, but he doesn’t look quite as scared, quite as concerned as he has previously. A small smile, not quite a smirk, pulls at Penny’s lips as she steps towards him. Her lips press up against his; and it takes a few seconds but he responds slowly. His moves are tentative at first but he seems to pick up cues from her.

Penny would love to give him a little shove and push him back against the couch, but she knows he isn’t ready for that–isn’t sure she is yet either. This paradigm they’ve created between the two of them is new and different for her as well. It’s all or nothing in a way she’s never been ready for before. So she pulls back slowly and pecks him once more on the edge of his mouth.

“Thank you, MoonPie,” she says with a smile as he heads back across the hall.

 

It is bliss for almost four full weeks after that.

Sheldon doesn’t change overnight just because they’re involved. And Penny is glad–she doesn’t want him to change necessarily. He has his annoyances, but they are what make Penny like him so much. She wouldn’t mind if he’d lay off a few of the not so charming ones every so often, but she’s seen what happens when couples try to change each other and she has no interest in going down that path. There are small things though, and they always make her smile. His words when they’re with the guys are the same, but there’s a...sparkle almost in his eye as he says them that makes Penny know that, while he means them, there is more to it now than there ever has been before. There are the small concessions he makes when he knows she is tired or worn out or feeling particularly down. He sneaks her car to a mechanic. When they are out with Emily and Jeremy he holds her hand tightly in his own. His smiles reach his eyes a little more often, as do hers. It is all those little things that reassure her.

They go out on two more dates just the two of them, and out with the Snows twice. They sneak kisses in 4B, both brief and slowly increasing ones, and Penny takes to driving Sheldon to and from work more often than not. Mostly they just spend more time together, whether alone or not.

The connections Sheldon had made at the party they’d gone to, along with some of his recent work, have garnered him a lot of attention. Once CalTech hears about some of the other universities and companies that are interested in him, Sheldon suddenly has more attention from Gablehauser and Siebert than he knows what to do with, or wants. Sheldon’s personality hasn’t changed enough that Gablehauser actually likes him, so Penny finds it highly entertaining the few times she is present to witness a conversation between the two of them. Jeremy and Sheldon spend even more time together and their conversations take on a hushed and urgent tone. Penny ignores it; she loves watching Sheldon work, but she’ll never understand more than the basics. She’s come to terms with that.

Penny starts on her second play at the theatre and everyone is a little more serious this time around. They’ve set the bar and want to rise above it. She spends hours working her lines and character. There’s a write-up in the arts section of the paper before it opens, a little bio on the theatre. They’d interviewed Amanda and Tim, but taken a photo of all three of them. Penny hangs it on her fridge. She is still working mostly regular hours at the Cheesecake Factory; she isn’t making enough yet at the theatre on a steady basis to give it up, but her finances aren’t the stressful sore point they’ve always been anymore. She buys shoes without feeling guilty and catches up on all of her bills, pays off her credit cards.

 

Then, one Wednesday afternoon, Penny has picked Sheldon up from work early and they are hanging out in 4A. They don’t expect anyone home and are cooking an early dinner for themselves. Penny, despite Sheldon’s protests, is sitting on the island watching him.

“You are being highly unsanitary, Penny.” Sheldon scolds her as he cuts up the last of the vegetables on the counter next to her.

She gasps in mock horror. “Did you just call me dirty!?”

And there it was, that smile that threatened the corners of his mouth. It still only comes out every so often, but the fact that it does makes her smirk triumphantly; she knew she’d wear him down some day. Reaching her arm out, she hooks it onto his neck and pulls him towards her.

“Penny!” He squawks. “I’m holding an extremely sharp knife. Please warn me when you are about to assault my person.”

“Here’s your warning,” she whispers as she hooks her right leg around him and pulls him in close. He is settled in between her legs now and his eyes dart nervously to the pan on the stove before they settle back on her.

“I need to add the vegetables in six and a half minutes,” he states calmly.

“Well we’d better not waste our time then,” Penny responds cheerfully before leaning in to kiss him. Sheldon is still a bit hesitant, still a bit skittish about it all, but he is getting better. He kisses her with focus and determination and no longer comments on germs when they break apart, at least not every time. And he hasn’t quite lost the amazement yet, and Penny can’t help but feel a little smug about that.

The counter and Sheldon’s height are a distinct advantage for her today and she scoots forward just a fraction to add a small amount of friction to the mix. She’s got one hand tangled in his hair and the other is on his ass, holding him in place. Sheldon starts at the first brush of Penny’s pelvis against his crotch, but has nowhere to go. Penny swallows any protests, or agreements, he might have as she deepens the kiss slightly. She doesn’t press further though, doesn’t want to push.

They are so caught up in each other that neither of them hears the door open or notices their new companions until they hear Howard’s voice.

“What the frak!?” he exclaims from his position behind Leonard.  Both Leonard and Raj are simply staring at Penny and Sheldon, eyes wide.

“What...what’s going on here?” Leonard finally asks; and Raj croaks in agreement.

Sheldon stills but doesn’t immediately remove himself. He pulls up tall and responds, “Penny and I are cooking dinner. It is Thai night and we thought we might attempt our own version instead of the usual take away. Unfortunately, we had not anticipated your early arrival so there is not adequate enough food for everyone.”

“Clearly you hadn’t anticipated our return,” Leonard says with a wave in their general direction.

“I think Leonard may have been referring to our more physical actions,” Penny stage whispered to Sheldon.

Matching Penny’s tone he says, “Ah, oh, yes, that does make more sense. I thought perhaps his eyesight or brain had finally failed him as I’ve been expecting for some time.” Louder, Sheldon responds, “Penny and I have undergone a paradigm shift and altered our relationship. The term is, I believe ‘going steady’, correct?”

“Oh, well, if we were in the 1950's sure,” Penny says with a laugh.

“You’re dating?” Howard attempts to clarify.

“Yes, Wolowitz, that is what I just...”

“How long has this been going on?” Leonard interrupts.

“The official shift in our relationship occurred five weeks, 1 day, 15 hours, and approximately 32 second ago.” Sheldon recites off.

Penny stares at him in amazement and hops off the counter, pulling him into a quick hug. She turns off the stove after she does so, concerned it is getting forgotten in whatever is about to happen..

“I don’t understand why you didn’t tell us.” Leonard says.

“Well…we just… it was new and we weren’t sure about everyone knowing. We were trying to settle into it ourselves,” Penny stumbles through an explanation.

“You sure looked pretty settled just now,” Leonard bites out harshly.

“Please don’t talk to Penny like that, Leonard. We hadn’t felt comfortable expressing our new dynamic to the group yet.”

“I bet your new friend Jeremy knows though, doesn’t he?”

“Whether Jeremy was aware of this impending decision is neither here nor there.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Leonard asked. “I’m your best friend.”

Sheldon sighs. “Fine, Leonard. I did not inform you as I no longer consider you a close confidant or friend. I’ll be terminating my portion of the lease at the end of the next month. The landlord has agreed that you can stay on if you’d like and transfer it solely to your name.”

“What?” Leonard exclaims.

“Yeah, what?!” Penny echoes. Sheldon shifts towards her. Going by the look on his face he at least realizes he may have done something wrong.

“Perhaps you and I should discuss this in your apartment.”

“Yeah, perhaps. Or maybe we should have discussed it before you announced it to the group!” She yells at him as she storms out.

He grabs his bag before hurrying after her and catches up with her just as she is closing her door. He knocks his usual triple knock, but his voice is subdued as he speaks her name.

“Penny, please.” He begs her when she doesn’t immediately open the door. And she can’t deny him, despite wanting to keep the door shut. She opens it slowly.

“Please don't overreact. I was going to talk to you about it tonight. Leonard just pushed my hand. It isn’t quite like it sounded. I mean, yes, I’ve decided to give up the lease, but please hear me out.”

 Penny looks at him dubiously. “Sheldon, you decided to move without even discussing it with me. This is one of those non optional social relationship instances that became part of us when we started dating. I know you're new at this but I can't believe you’d think it would be okay to just up and move without even talking to me about it.” Her anger swells again as she thinks about it. He can’t leave her behind here, can’t move on to bigger and better things without her. She’s just come to realize how much he means to her and she doesn’t want to give up on that yet. For once she isn’t ready to run from the possibility of commitment, of happiness.

“Penny, wait! Please listen. I really did intend to discuss it with you tonight and nothing is set in stone. There are some things that I needed to check with still. And, mostly, I needed to discuss certain matters with you about it.” He sighs. “But… I can’t be there anymore, stuck in 4A with Leonard. Can we sit down, please?” He breaks off suddenly. Penny nods and they both sink down onto her sofa.

“I've been discreetly offered several positions that I've been contemplating taking. I haven’t decided anything yet; but, Penny, I’m not content at CalTech anymore, not sure I ever have been. I’m not happy with Leonard, and Rajesh, and Howard. And I thought that was okay, that maybe that was all there would be for me, that I was _homo novus_ and it didn’t matter. But you, and Jeremy, have taught me that having relationships doesn’t necessarily mean forsaking my work or turning my back on my beliefs and structures.”

Penny can’t help it; she reaches out and wraps her arms around him and squeezes. A small squawk comes out of him, but he doesn’t pull away.

“Penny?” He questions quietly.

“Of course you deserve it sweetie; and I hate that you thought you didn’t.”

“Penny, I resigned myself long ago to living a life of science. It was okay, but it is better now. And I have you to thank for that.”

“I don’t want you to go,” Penny sniffs.

“Who said anything about going?” Sheldon asks with a hint of his rare and playful smile.

“But…you. You’re moving. You said so!” She exclaims.

“You said yourself you know that I am new at this, but I would have hoped you knew me well enough by now to understand that…that I am. Well; that you are one of the few people I can stand in my life should be indicative to you, correct? I don’t let just anyone touch me,” he adds with his small, breathy laugh.

“I should hope not!” She exclaims and whacks him gently on the arm.

“What I am trying to convey, Penny, is that I would have hoped you would realize I hold a high degree of commitment to this...relationship with you.”

He turns towards her fully. “Two of the three opportunities presented to me keep me in either L.A. or Pasadena.”

“And are they the ones that you want? You are truly amazing at what you do, Sheldon, and you can’t turn something down that could mean making it easier to win the Noble Prize or prove string theory.”

“A private research company has offered Jeremy and me a joint position. It is predominately research, but there is also a lecture, television series, and traveling components.”

“Is that the one that you want?” She asks quietly; and he nods. He pulls a manila folder out of the messenger bag he’d brought with him. Opening it up, he hands her two sets of paper clipped papers.

He stares at his feet momentarily. “I’m unsure of usual protocol, so I may be overstepping numerous social conventions and unwritten rules here. Please don’t let it alarm you. These are two different houses, one in Pasadena, one on the edge of L.A., that I have taken an interest in. They are both close enough to the theatre for you, and within reasonable distance of the building Jeremy and I are considering purchasing for use. Not to sway your decision in any way, but the one in Pasadena is mere minutes from the train museum and from a house that Jeremy and Emily are considering purchasing.”

Penny is gaping at him. “Sheldon, are you asking me if I want to live with you? Are you asking me to move into a house with you?”

“Well, yes, Penny. I thought that was obvious. Should I have led with a more direct question?”

“Yes, you crazy physicist; yes, you should have.”

She looks down at the packets in her hands. “Which one is the one in Pasadena?” She asks. He points to the one in her right hand.

It’s a cute little two story that is a muted beige color, not quite terra cotta. It isn’t huge–three bedrooms, two baths, a kitchen, a living room.  There’s a small yard and a deck, a one stall garage. Modest; but tastefully so.

“When do you need to decide by?”

“I need to let them know tomorrow. I was hoping you’d consent to dinner tomorrow with the Snows so that I can tell Jeremy that I’ve officially accepted. If we are of agreement.”

“Honey, you need to do what is best for you and what you want. This is a great opportunity, but if one of them is better, you need to think about that as well.”

“This is the one I want,” he states assuredly. Penny hugs him.

“I am so proud of you, Sheldon. You know I only understand a fraction of what it is you do, but even that fraction is amazing. And you deserve to go out to the world and show them what it is you can do.”

“Thank you, Penny. Despite your lack of understanding, your faith in me is a boon to my confidence and demeanor.”

She finishes the hug with a little squeeze and a peck on his cheek. “Are you sure you want to live with me, Sheldon? We’ve only been dating for a few weeks. You’ll have to deal with my shoes and my messes on a full time basis. I’m sometimes loud and crazy, and I like to sleep in. And what about logistics? Are you ready to share a bedroom with me?” The more Penny talks the crazier the idea sounds, but the more she can’t let it go.

“I am very aware of our differences, Penny. They are an integral part of our companionship I believe. This is not an offer I would make lightly—I am not generally prone to rash decisions. There was a chart involved.”

She stares at him for a moment, realizing how serious he is. Whether Sheldon does truly know how odd his suggestion is in normal dating routines, she isn’t quite sure. They haven’t talked about their relationship after the initial decision, and they’ve never expressed their feelings for each other directly, but she knows, somehow, in this moment, that this is it for her. That Sheldon Cooper, B.S., M.S., M.A., Ph.D., Sc.D. is it. God, she’d panicked when she’d been presented with these thoughts before—from her pregnancy scare back in high school to Kurt. But that panicky feeling wasn’t there.

“Yes, Sheldon.” She says after her moment of understanding comes to an end. His head pops up to analyze her. Penny kisses him softly before he has a chance to spew any of his thoughts out.

“Oh, Penny, the dinner!” He exclaims suddenly and jumps up.

She chuckles softly and follows him. Leonard, Howard, and Raj are gone when they get back across the hall. They’re able to salvage and finish cooking the stir fry.

“Now, I need to relax and veg out, Sheldon. This wore me down.”

“I suppose that is fine. We can turn on the TV whilst we eat and relax. These last few days have altered my REM as well, causing me to have slightly elevated stress levels as well” Sheldon responds with a grimace.

 

 

They are out the next evening with Jeremy and Emily per Sheldon’s request. They’ve opted for an early game of bowling followed by dinner at the Snow’s.

“So everyone found out,” Penny whispers to Emily while Sheldon and Jeremy are setting up the machine and inputting their names.

“How’d it go?” She asks curiously.

“Horrible. Leonard was awful, Howard was mean, and Raj…well Raj didn’t say anything technically, but he looked hella confused. And then Sheldon drops that he isn’t renewing his lease next month—which I sure didn’t know–and even more hell broke loose.” Emily’s eyes dart to the left and Penny’s eyes widen.

“Oh my God, you knew and I didn’t!?”

“No, Penny. I didn’t know that exactly. I just…” She trails off and looks at the guys. “Sheldon and Jeremy have been talking a lot, you know. And I think Sheldon just realized there was a lot more possibility out there for him then he’d thought. That he doesn’t have to be stuck at a job he doesn’t always enjoy and where he isn’t respected or liked. I knew some of what was being discussed, but not all of it. I think Sheldon wanted to surprise you.”

“Well he sure as hell accomplished that.” Penny sighs. “He said all of that as well—well, in about eight hundred more words, but he did explain it to me. And I get it, and I’m proud of him and I want him to be happy. I’m just confused and still feeling a bit like a whirlwind. And it didn’t exactly lend credence to our situation when that popped out in front of the guys.”

Emily pats her knee and they turn towards the boys, silently agreeing to drop the conversation for now. They bowl two quick games–one couple vs couple and one guys vs girls. Sheldon and Penny win the first one but Sheldon and Jeremy win the second; Sheldon is smug as they pile into Jeremy’s car and drive back to their house.

 

They are all sitting around the table, chatting and laughing. Emily has just brought the food out and they are about to dig in when Sheldon clears his throat.

“I have made a decision,” he says. Everyone turns and looks at him. Both Emily and Penny are smiling and Jeremy is as well, though he looks slightly nervous.

“I have decided to accept the position with Byson International and, in turn, work with Jeremy,” he announces proudly. Everyone bursts out into excited chatter and congratulations and there are hugs, though tense from Sheldon, all around.

“So tell me more about what the two of you will be doing? Sheldon gave me the basics, but I want the details!” Penny exclaims.

And so Sheldon starts in on a whirlwind explanation, dotted with interjections by Jeremy, of their funding and research as well as some of the traveling they’ll do to collaborate with others in the field. His eyes light up even more as he mentions Switzerland and CERN and the chances he thinks he’ll have to visit. The research side is very similar to what he is doing now, though slightly less moderated.

“This means you’ll be here permanently then, right?” Penny asks Emily hopefully. She’ll be glad of that.

Emily nods. “We’ve looked at a few houses. How about you?”

Sheldon and Penny exchange a look–one filled with happiness, trepidation, and plans. The realization of it makes Penny smile even more, a slight blush highlighting her cheeks.

“I made an offer this morning on our preferred choice,” Sheldon tells them.

“Well I think this calls for champagne!” Emily says with a smile.

 

 

 

Penny slowly begins to box up her apartment. She still can’t believe everything that has happened in the last few months. Sure, some of it was luck, some of it was chance–but she worked hard and took the opportunities that were there for her. And she’s proud of it; for the first time in a long time she’s happy at work and with herself and the people in her life. The days of waitressing haven’t been left behind quite yet, but her shifts are shorter and her happiness makes it all a bit more bearable. It’s her dream, but in a realistic way. She may never be on the red carpet like she’s fantasized about in the past, but that doesn’t mean she hasn’t hit her goals, hadn’t accomplished a thing or two. It doesn’t mean she cannot be happy. That she would find that happiness with a Whack-A-Doodle Praying Mantis look-a-like has surprised pretty much everyone, even herself. But if picking up her life in Nebraska, moving to California, getting cheated on, and working tiring thankless hours at a job has taught her anything it’s to not question happiness just because it looks a little different than she’s used to.

It takes her over a week to pack it all, despite the small size of the place and even with Sheldon’s organizational schematics and check lists. Part of her doesn’t want to rush it; there are a lot of memories in this apartment–both good and bad. Parties, football, meals, laundry, Penny Blossoms, Age of Conan, kisses. Sure, there were also fights, drinking, climbing unending stairs, prank wars, immaturity, and awkwardness. But she grew up here; she met Sheldon here. She’ll remember it always as the place that she finally found herself.

Sheldon has almost twice as much stuff as she does, even despite her shoes. A majority of them are already packed—pristine items permanently stowed away in tubs. He is a surprisingly efficient packer though and doesn’t dawdle over things the way Penny does. Leonard spends most of his time away from the apartment; things are tense between them all. Even more so once they find out he’s leaving CalTech. Penny expects a loud confrontation, but it never happens; they each seem to simply slip away from each other.

Sheldon spends two full days vetting moving companies and still makes them all wear gloves when they show up to carry his things. It is a warm Saturday when they move from 2311 N. Los Roblos Avenue. Nine weeks to the day since Penny and Sheldon acknowledged the shift in their relationship.

The moving guys have just loaded the last box into their van and Penny is double checking her apartment, ready to pile into her car and follow them. She meets Sheldon in the hall just as he comes out of 4A and she pauses. The tears come without warning as she looks between the doors of 4A to 4B.

“Penny?” Sheldon asks in alarm.

“Oh, sweetie. I’m just emotional. A lot happened here. I’m glad to move on and that I am doing it with you is the best part. But I met you here,” she falters momentarily but forces herself to go on; “I fell in love with you here. I’m a little sad to leave it, even if it is for bigger and better things.”

Sheldon glances from her to the door of 4A. “The events that transpired here were very important when I think back on it. That someone else might have rented that apartment does not bear thinking about. You coming here was this universe’s way of taking care of us.”

“It was cataclysmic,” Penny says with a smile. And Sheldon smiles in return and kisses her before they head down the stairs for the last time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed our journey. I appreciate comments and constructive criticism.


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